| 释义 |
▪ I. sail, n.1|seɪl|
Forms: 1 seᵹel, seᵹl, 3 sæil(e, 3–4 seil, 3–5 seile, seyle, 3–7 sayle, 3–8 saile, 4 seille, seyll(e, 4–5 seyl, 4–7 sayl, 4–8 sale, 5 ceyle, seylle, 5–6 saill(e, sayll(e, 6 sal, saule, 4– sail.
[Com. Teut.: OE. seᵹ(e)l neut. (and masc.), corresp. to OS. segel (MLG. segel, MDu. zeghel, zeil, Du. zeil), OHG. segal, segil (MHG., mod.G. segel), ON. segl (Sw. segel, Da. seil):—OTeut. *seglom.
The ulterior origin is obscure. No certainly equivalent form is known outside Teut., and the only known root of the form *seg- (:—Indogermanic *segh-) has only the senses ‘to hold, have, conquer’, which do not satisfactorily account for the meaning of the word. Some scholars refer the word to the root *sek- (Teut. *seh-), to cut, taking it to mean a piece of cloth cut to shape.]
1. a. One of the shaped pieces of canvas or other strong textile material fastened to the masts, spars or stays of a vessel, so as to catch the wind and cause it to move through the water. Also occas. a similar apparatus for propelling a wind-driven carriage.
c888K. ælfred Boeth. xli. §3 Hæt fealdan þæt seᵹl & eac hwilum lecᵹan þone mæst. a900OE. Martyrol. 4 Mar. 34 Ferað nu swa swa eowre seᵹlas sendon ᵹeseted. c1205Lay. 1101 Heo rærden heora mastes heo wunden up seiles. c1290Beket 1803 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 158 In þe schipes seile an heiȝ: þis holi man let do Ane Croiz, þat Man fer isaiȝ. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2828 Hor seiles hii spredeþ in þe se & hider hii comeþ iwis. a1300Cursor M. 24829 Þair sail þai sett up o þair scipp. 1375Barbour Bruce xvi. 692 Thai rasit salys but abaid. c1386Chaucer Miller's T. 346, I vndertake with-outen Mast and seyl Yet shal I sauen hire and thee and me. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 183 Schippes..wiþ seilles and wiþ oores. 1390Gower Conf. II. 258 Thei gon withinne schipes bord, The Sail goth up, and forth thei strauhte. c1440[see 5]. c1470Henry Wallace ix. 53 The seymen than..Thair lynys kest, and waytyt well the tyd; Leyt salys fall, and has thar cours ynom. c1489Caxton Blauchardyn xxxiv. 127 They made to take vp the ancres & to hale vp their saylles. 1506Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. III. 295 Item..for jcxiiij elne cammes to the schip callit the Mergreit for hir sales..summa v li. xj s. viiij d. 1530Palsgr. 268/2 Seyle of a shyppe, uoille. 1533Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. VI. 165 For xij elnis canves to mend hir saulis. 1568Grafton Chron. II. 242 He drew vp the sayles and came with a quarter winde to haue the vauntage of the sonne. 1611Bible Isa. xxxiii. 23 Thy tacklings are loosed..they could not spread the saile. 1667Milton P.L. iii. 439 The barren plaines Of Sericana, where Chineses drive With Sails and Wind thir canie Waggons light. 1669Sturmy Mariner's Mag. i. 17 Now the Sail is furled, and you have the Ship in all her low Sails. c1764Gray Triumphs Owen 15 The Norman sails afar Catch the winds. 1850Tennyson In Mem. cxv, The flocks are whiter down the vale, And milkier every milky sail On winding stream or distant sea. c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 20 What is meant by small sails? Topgallant sails and royals, topmast, topgallant, and lower studding sails. Ibid., What are meant by storm sails? Fore storm staysail and trysail, main staysail and trysail, and mizen trysail.
fig.a1533Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1537) N n ij, They lacke the reyne of knowlege, & the sayles of wisedome, & the ankers of experience. a1568R. Ascham Scholem. ii. (Arb.) 151 Where Tullie doth set vp his saile of eloquence. 1599Shakes. Hen. V, i. ii. 274 But tell the Dolphin, I will keepe my State, Be like a King, and shew my Sayle of Greatnesse, When I do rowse me in my Throne of France.
b. transf. Applied to the wing of a bird. poet. Also techn. in Falconry, the wing of a hawk.
1590Spenser F.Q. i. xi. 18 He, [a dragon] cutting way With his broad sayles, about him soared round. 1592Nashe P. Penilesse c j b, To clippe the winges of a high towring Faulcon, who..was wont..to looke with an amiable eye vpon her gray breast, and her speckled side sayles. 1678Phillips (ed. 4), Sails, in Faulconry are the Wings of a Hawk. 1810Scott Lady of L. iii. iii, The mountain eagle..Spread her dark sails on the wind.
c. transf. Applied to something that is spread out like a sail, or that catches the wind.
1616T. Scot Philomythie (ed. 2) D 2, The Pehen drest her selfe and spred her taile, The Turky-hen aduanc'd her spotted saile. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 246 The Fan of Bacchus, with the flying Sail. 1824S. E. Ferrier Inher. lxxiii, The drooping capes, arms, sails, and tails of his cloak were all in commotion.
†d. Aeronaut. Applied to a flat aerodynamically structured part of an aircraft. Obs.
1808G. Cayley Aeronaut. & Misc. Note-bk. (1933) 64, I tried a small square sail in one plane, with the weight nearly in the same, & I could not perceive that the centre & resistance differed from the centre of bulk. 1817Phil. Mag. L. 35 The sketch..represents a side view of the arrangement of the moving and steering sails of a balloon on the wing plan. 1837Mechanics' Mag. XXVI. 421/2 From the hinder mast C a sail may be conveniently braced to either side, so as to act as a rudder, and thus preserve a steady course. 1902F. Walker Aërial Navigation viii. 118 A head sail i and stern sails h, h1 had braces and halliards for steering... The sails h, h1 acted as aëroplanes as well as for steering purposes. 1903― Pract. Kites & Aëroplanes ii. 25 The ‘leeches’, or free edges of the sails..are double-stitched around a leech-rope.
2. a. Sails collectively. Also fig. Often in phrases to carry sail, cross sail, crowd sail, hoist sail, lower sail, make sail, set sail, shorten sail, strike (etc.) sail, for which see also those verbs.
c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 654 (Cleopatra) Fleth ek the queen, withal hire porpere sayl. c1435Torr. Portugal 1426, I rede we take down sayle & rowe. a1548Hall Chron., Edw. IV 209 The kynges shyp was good with sayle. 1567Fenton Trag. Disc. v. (1898) I. 232 It ought to have sufficed to have revoked, and made hym cross saile, from the pursute of so bad an adventure. 1806A. Duncan Nelson 65 The Admiral..carried all sail. 1831Scott Ct. Rob. ii, Every way qualified to bear me through the cross currents of the court by main pull of oar and press of sail. 1853M. Arnold Scholar Gypsy xxv, [He] snatched his rudder, and shook out more sail. 1893Leland Mem. I. 155 Our captain was a handsome, dissipated, and ‘loud’ young man, with rather more sail than ballast, but good-natured and obliging.
†b. transf. See quot. Obs.
1759Stillingfl. tr. Riberg's Econ. Nat., note in Misc. Tracts (1762) 45 As i have..weighed several kinds of birds, i shall here subjoyn a table..with the proportions of the weight to the sail. N.B. By sail i mean the extent of the wings and tail.
3. Phrases (senses 1 and 2).
†a. to bear sail: said lit. of a ship; hence fig. to be exalted, to be prosperous, also to bear a great, high or lofty sail. to bear (a) low sail, to be of low sail: to demean oneself humbly; to live at a modest rate; to cut down expenses (see bear v.1 3 b.). to live at a low sail: to live humbly. to pull down one's sail or sails: to moderate one's ambitions or one's scale of expenditure. Obs.
a1300[see bear v.1 3 b]. 1390Gower Conf. I. 65 Bot whanne he berth lowest the Seil, Thanne is he swiftest to beguile The womman. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI 140 Whiche maie by pinchyng and bearyng a lowe saile, Waxe riche and be set at libertie. 1548Udall Erasm. Par. Pref. 18, I was utterly mynded to pulle downe my sayles againe. 1549Latimer 2nd Serm. bef. Edw. VI To Rdr. (Arb.) 51 Pul downe thy sayle. 1573Tusser Husb. (1878) 211 Then waies I saught, by wisdome taught, To beare low saile, least stock should quaile. 1587Harrison England ii. v. in Holinshed I. 164/1 How diuerse of them also coueting to beare an high saile doo insinuate themselues with yoong gentlemen and noble men newlie come to their lands. 1587Fleming Concl. Holinshed III. 1592/1 If the helpe of such as are furnished with varietie of knowledge,..had beene as forward to aduance this worke,..as some of low saile, willing to laie out their poore talent, have affoorded what furtherance they were able [etc.]. 1601B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. (Qo. 1) i. i, Moderate your expences (now at first) As you may keepe the same proportion still. Beare a low saile. 16022nd Pt. Return fr. Parnass. iv. iii. 1941 Schollers must frame to liue at a low sayle. 1610Healey St. Aug. Citie of God (1620) 731 If learning had many such friends as he, it would beare an higher sayle then it doth. 1665Manley Grotius' Low C. Warres 211 They drew in their Mooned and crescent Squadrons into the Body of the Fleet, and that one might not go before another, bore less Sayl. 1733Oxf. Methodists 6 Be not high-minded; but fear... Bear no more Sail than is necessary.
†b. to come to sail: to set out on a sailing voyage; = sail v. 3. ? Also (earlier) in the same sense, to go or fere to (the) sail. (Cf. sail n.2)
c1350Will. Palerne 2731 Þe werwolf waited wiȝtly which schip was ȝarest, to fare forþ at þat flod & fond on sone þat was gayly greyt to go to þe seile, & feiþliche frauȝt ful of fine wines. Ibid. 2745 And faire at þe fulle flod þei ferden to saile. 1633T. James Voy. 5 Wee came to Sayle. 1712W. Rogers Voy. 3 About twelve we fir'd a Gun, and all came to sail. 1743Bulkeley & Cummins Voy. S. Seas 6 At Eight weigh'd, and came to Sail.
c. full sail: a sail (or sails collectively) filled or distended by the wind; the condition of a ship with sails so filled. at, † with full sail(s [= L. pleno velo, plenis velis, F. à pleines voiles]: (sailing) with a strong favourable wind, at full speed; fig. making rapid and unresisted progress; so also full sail as advb. phrase. In mod. use, in full sail is applied to describe the condition of a ship with all sails set; also fig.
a1533Ld. Berners Huon lx. 208 Yonder comyth a shyppe with full sayle. 1560J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 134 b, Sathan..shall make towardes us with full sayle [orig. plenis velis]. 1564Grindal Serm. Ferdinandus D j, The doctrine of purgatorie and praying for the dead hath gone with full saile. c1600Shakes. Sonn. lxxxvi, Was it the proud full saile of his great verse. 1618Bolton Florus Ded. (1636) 2 To increase in the full saile of fortune. 1648Gage West Ind. xxi. 201 So the two ships..sailed away con Viento en Popa, with full Sail. 1653H. More Antid. Ath. iii. xiv. §7 Faith and Desire ought to be full-sail to make such Voyages prosperous. 1699W. Dampier Voy. II. iii. 39 Constant..Land-winds, by which the Wherry-men run with full sail, both to..and back again. 1715Lond. Gaz. No. 5357/2 The Danish Fleet having the Wind came full sail up with the Swedes. 1758Goldsm. Mem. Protestant (1895) II. 274 Smith went full Sail to reconnoitre the Enemy. 1818Scott Hrt. Midl. ix, Her father..often took an opportunity of going full-sail into controversial subjects. 1848A. & H. Mayhew Greatest Plague of Life xiii. 202 The stupid engravings..that had nothing at all to do with the song, for I declare if there wasn't a ship in full sail put as an illustration to ‘Away, Away, to the Mountain's Brow!’ 1858W. H. Haswell in Merc. Marine Mag. V. 208 The vessel was at full sail. a1859Macaulay Hist. Eng. xxiii. V. 12 The Protestant wind, before which the Dutch armament had run full sail down the Channel, had driven King James's navy back into the Thames. 1864–8Browning J. Lee's Wife ii. iv, With whom began Love's voyage full-sail. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Full sails, the sails well set, and filled by the wind. 1887Bowen æneid i. 400 Thy vessels..the haven have entered, or bend Now full sail for its mouth.
transf. and fig.1671Milton P.R. iv. 582 So Satan fell and strait a fiery Globe Of Angels on full sail of wing flew nigh. 1893‘Mark Twain’ Lett. to Publishers (1967) 348 A well-organized business..an enterprise not experimental but under full sail.
d. under sail: having the sails set.
c893K. ælfred Oros. i. i. §21 Þæt þæt scip wæs ealne weᵹ yrnende under seᵹle. 1508Kennedie Flyting w. Dunbar 457 Quhen that the schip was saynit, et vndir saile [etc.]. 1588Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 549 The ship is vnder saile, and here she coms amain. 1690Leybourn Curs. Math. 454 Suppose..you see a Ship..under Sail, making towards the Land. 1748Anson's Voy. ii. iv. 162 In the afternoon [we] got under sail. 1836Marryat Midsh. Easy xiii, About ten miles distant, followed by the Harpy, under all sail. 1857C. Gribble in Merc. Marine Mag. (1858) V. 1 Weighed anchor.., under all sail. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Under sail, the state of a ship when she is in motion from the action of wind on her sails.
4. a. In collective sing. (also formerly † in plural), chiefly with numeral: (So many) sailing-vessels.
1436Rolls of Parlt. IV. 501/1 A Navey..to ye noumbre of xii score Sailles. 1458Paston Lett. I. 428 Ther were xxviijie sayle of Spaynyards on the se. 1480Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxliv. (1482) 296 The kyng ordeyned his nauye of shippes in the hauen of southampton in to the nombre of cccxx sailles. 1568Grafton Chron. II. 237 The Frenchmen were .xiij. sayles great and small. 1590Disc. Sp. Fleet inv. Eng. 4 The whole nauie was at this present about 90. saile of all sorts. 1595Shakes. John iii. iv. 2 So by a roaring Tempest on the flood A whole Armado of conuicted saile Is scattered and dis-ioyn'd from fellowship. 1633T. Stafford Pac. Hib. ii. viii. (1821) 325 Of their fiue and fourtie Saile of ships, seventeene saile onely are fitted for men of warre. 1649W. Gray Surv. Newcastle 19 The Shipping which comes into this River for Coales, there being sometimes three hundred Sayles of Ships. 1743Bulkeley & Cummins Voy. S. Seas 3 We were informed of ten Sail of Ships cruising off and on, to the Westward. 1831Brewster Optics xxvi. 258 He saw from the mast-head eighteen sail of ships. 1863H. Cox Instit. iii. viii. 717 The Royal navy comprised in all twenty-seven sail.
b. A ship or other vessel, esp. as descried by its sails. sail ho! ‘the exclamation used when a strange ship is first discerned at sea’ (Adm. Smyth).
1517R. Torkington Pilgr. (1884) 12 The Duke [Doge of Venice]..went in ther Archa triumphali, which ys in maner of a sayle of a straange facion. 1556W. Towrson in Hakluyt Voy. (1589) 99 We spyed a saile comming towardes vs, and as soone as wee spyed him we..manned out our Skiffe. After the saile had espyed vs, he kept about. 1627Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. xiii. 59 A saile, how beares she or stands shee, to wind-ward or lee-ward, set him by the Compasse. 1634Sir T. Herbert Trav. 11 Our Admirall descried a Saile, and immediately made towards her. 1669Sturmy Mariner's Mag. i. ii. 18 A Sail, a Sail. Where? Fair by us. 1726Swift Gulliver i. viii, I descried a Sail steering to the South-East. 1813Byron Corsair i. ii, Gaze where some distant sail a speck supplies, With all the thirsting eye of Enterprise. 1840R. H. Dana Bef. Mast ii, Her decks were filled with passengers who had come up at the cry of ‘Sail ho!’
5. An apparatus (consisting formerly of a sheet of canvas stretched on a frame, now usually of an arrangement of boards) attached to each of the arms of a windmill for the purpose of presenting a surface to be acted on by the wind. Also (windmill) sails collectively, surface presented by the sails.
c1440Promp. Parv. 65/1 Ceyle of a schyppe, or mylle, velum. carbasus. 1589R. Harvey Plain Perc. (1590) 3 The clacke of thy mill is..noisome.., thou hast wind at will to thy sailes. 1688R. Holme Armoury iii. 340/2 The parts of a Wind-Mill... The Sail or Wind end. a1700B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Sails, Hawk's Wings; also Windmill-wings. 1759Smeaton in Phil. Trans. LI. 161 The velocity of the extremities of Dutch sails,..are considerably quicker than the velocity of the wind. 1825J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 122 Into these arms are mortised several small cross⁓bars, and to them are fastened two, three, or four, long bars,..so that the bars intersect each other, and form a kind of lattice work, on which a cloth is spread to receive the action of wind. These are called the sails. 1845Encycl. Metrop. VIII. 131/2 There are usually four states in which it can be set according to the velocity of the wind..which are termed full sail, quarter reef, sword point, and dagger point. 1868Chamb. Encycl. X. 218/1 The amount of sail that a windmill can carry with advantage is limited. a1887Jefferies Field & Hedgerow (1889) 86 One day pussy was ingeniously examining the machinery [of a windmill], when the wind suddenly rose, the sails revolved, and she was ground up. 1888Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 599/2 American windmills... The sails consist of narrow boards or slats arranged radially.
6. Zool.
a. The large dorsal fin of the sail-fish.
b. One of the two large tentacles of the Nautilus, formerly believed to be used as sails.
1817Shelley Rev. Islam vii. xxvi, A Nautilus upon the fountain played, Spreading his azure sail. 1822Raffles Let. 30 Nov. in Lady Raffles Mem. (1830) 526 The only amusing discovery which we have recently made is that of a sailing fish,..I have sent a set of the sails home. 1840Penny Cycl. XVII. 210/2 The first two arms [of the Argonaut] are more robust than the others, and should be so, because they serve as masts to support the sails, which, spread out, act before the wind as such. 1860Chamb. Encycl. I. 390/1 The descriptions..of argonauts..employing six of their tentacula as oars, and spreading out two..as sails to catch the breeze, are now regarded as entirely fabulous.
7. S. Africa. A tarpaulin or canvas sheet for covering a wagon.
1850R. G. Cumming Hunter's Life S. Afr. (ed. 2) I. 220, I covered my waggon with new sails. 1891Olive Schreiner African Farm ii. xii, He drew the sails down before and behind, and the wagon rolled away slowly.
8. Naut. and Mining. A funnel-shaped bag or orifice on the deck of a vessel or on the ground over mine-galleries, for the purpose of ventilation. Cf. wind-sail.
1874J. H. Collins Metal Mining (1875) 117 In Cornwall..the writer has seen a zinc rain-water pipe..with a miner's jacket extended by wires at the top for a ‘cap-head’ or ‘sail’. 1875in Knight Dict. Mech.
9. The conning-tower of a submarine.
1959Jane's Fighting Ships 414/1 ‘The sail’, as the conning tower is now called on nuclear submarines. 1963Guardian 1 Mar. 1 The Ethan Allen looked like any other submarine though the conning tower—which they call the sail these days—was much larger than usual. 1968New Scientist 26 Dec. 704/2 Photographs of the wreckage show that the Scorpion split in two at the point on the hull where the ‘sail’ (the new name for the conning tower) is mounted near the forward end. 1974L. Deighton Spy Story xviii. 190 The great submarine threaded its way out through the Sound... The skipper came down from the sail.
10. Obvious combinations.
a. simple attrib., as sail area, sail canvas, sail drill, sail pulley, † sail-rope, sail sewing-machine, sail-spread;
b. objective, as sail-carrying, sail furler, sail-keeper, sail looser, sail-making, sail sewer, sail sewing, sail trimmer; also sail-bearing, sail-filling, sail-stiffening adjs.;
c. instrumental, as sail-assisted, sail-dotted, sail-propelled;
d. similative, as sail-broad, sail-stretched adjs.
1898W. F. Jackson in W. A. Morgan ‘House’ on Sport I. i. 19 Traditions are still heard of boats lurking behind barges..to dart out at the last moment with something surprising in the way of *sail area. 1976Oxf. Compan. Ships & Sea 947/2 There was no form of handicap on size or sail area.
1593Nashe Unfort. Trav. (1594) G 2 b, As the Estrich hath a sharpe goad or pricke wherewith he spurreth himselfe forward in his *saile-assisted race.
c1595J. Dickenson Sheph. Compl. (1878) 12 And *saile-bearing pine glide through thin aire.
1667Milton P.L. ii. 930 At last his *Sail-broad Vannes He spreads for flight.
1482in Charters etc. Edin. (1871) 169 Of the hundreth *sail canves ij s.
1883Harper's Mag. Aug. 444/2 We believed in great beam for *sail-carrying power. 1894Outing (U.S.) XXIV. 21/1 To gain stability [in a canoe] for sail-carrying.
1898Kipling in Morn. Post 9 Nov. 5/1 The little strip of *sail-dotted blue.
1886Pall Mall G. 17 Sept. 11/1 While at *sail drill an ordinary seaman..fell..on to the upper deck.
1887Morris Odyss. xi. 8 A goodly breeze *sail-filling.
c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 45 The *sailfurlers..get the sail out of the sailroom.
c1440Promp. Parv. 451/2 *Seyl kepare, or rewlare, p[ro]reta.
c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 45 *Sail loosers will go aloft at the order ‘bend sails’.
1797Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVII. 431/2 A few general observations on *sail-making.
1888Times 14 Jan. 16/2 *Sail-propelled training ships.
1601Holland Pliny I. 390 Whereof they vse to turne for curtain rings and *saile pullies.
c1205Lay. 17395 Ȝe mote uaste heom wriðen mid strongen *sæil-rapen. c1475Pict. Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 805/7 Hic rudens,..a seyllerope.
1513Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. IV. 471 Item, to iij *saill sewaris for iij wolkis wagis.
1884Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl., *Sail Sewing Machine, a large-sized sewing machine with extensive table for sewing widths of duck to form sails.
1886Encycl. Brit. XXI. 823/2 In determining what *sail-spread can be safely given to a ship.
1945P. Larkin North Ship 35 Increasingly to fear *Sail-stiffening air.
1623Massinger Bondman i. iii, O're our heads with *sayle stretch'd wings, Destruction houers.
c1810Adm. Patton in 19th Cent. Nov. (1899) 724 note, *Sail trimmers were immediately sent to clear the sail.
11. Special Comb.: sail-arm, (a) one of the radiating beams to which the sails of a windmill are attached; a ‘whip’; (b) one of the tentacles of a nautilus which bear the ‘sails’; sail-axle, the axle on which the sails of a windmill revolve; sailboard orig. U.S., a surf-board or light sail-boat which is propelled by wind caught in its sail; also as v. intr.; hence sailboarder, sailboarding vbl. n.; sail-boat (chiefly N. Amer.), a sailing-boat; † sail-bond, (? error for -bonet) = bonnet n.2 (cf. quot. 1483 there); sail-burton (see quot.); sail curtain = curtain n.1 2 a; sail-duck [a. Du. zeildoek] = duck n.3 1; † sail-fan, a species of fan used in winnowing corn; sail-fluke, the whiff, Rhombus megastoma; sail-flying = sailplaning vbl. n.; sail-hook, a small hook for holding the seams of a sail while it is being sewn; sail-hoop, one of the wooden rings by which fore and aft sails are secured to masts and stays (Knight Dict. Mech. 1875); sail-house, a house where sails are stored; sail-lizard (see quot.); sail-loft (see quot. 1769); sail-maker, one whose business it is to make, repair, or alter sails; spec., on board ship, a sailor (in the U.S. navy, a warrant officer) whose duty it is to take charge of and keep in repair all sails, awnings, etc.; sail-needle, a large needle used in sewing canvas; sail plan (see quot. 1961); sail-room, a room (in a ship) for storing sails; sail-shell, a name for the nautilus; sail-ship, a sailing-vessel; sail-swelled a., having filled sails; sail thread, twine, thread or twine used in sewing sails; † sail wand, one of the rods forming the framework of a windmill sail; sail wing, the sail of a hang glider with its framework; (the structures described in quots. 1972, 1974 differ from one another); sail-winged a., poet. [after L. vēlivolus], (a) of ships, having sails that serve as wings; (b) transf. as an epithet of the sea; (c) having wings like sails.
1760J. Ferguson Lect. (1764) 52 The same velocity that it would move if put upon the *sail-arms. 1840Penny Cycl. XVII. 210/2 In fact, the series of suckers of the sail-arms, when the membrane of the sails is wrapped about the shell, is placed exactly over the keel of it in such a manner that [etc.].
1868Chamb. Encycl. X. 218/1 A whip or radius of from 33 to 40 feet in length, firmly fastened at right angles to the *sail-axle.
1962D. Klein Beginning with Boats iv. 95 Another boat that may tempt you because it can give you a great deal of fun at rather low cost is what is called a *sailboard—that is, a sort of surfboard equipped with centerboard, rudder, and sailing rig. 1978B. Webb tr. Brockhaus & Stanciu's Sailboarding 8 You can ski in any mountainous region where there is snow, just as you can sailboard on any water, whether it be an ocean or a reservoir. 1980Daily Tel. 15 Sept. 2 (caption) A 22ft-long sailboard made for two..being demonstrated at Southampton.
1974A. H. Drummond Sailboarding 10 The surfboarder catches a wave and uses its energy to surf along. The *sailboarder does just about the same thing, except that he uses a sail to capture the energy of the wind... Thus, sailboarding is surfing using wind power. 1979Yachts & Yachting 9 Nov. 1433/3 Wandering sailboarders could be pleased with a complete cover for their board.
1974*Sailboarding [see sailboarder above]. 1978Times 5 Apr. 8/5 Beau Vallon is the island's most visited beach... Enthusiasts use it for sail-boarding, water-skiing, para-gliding, diving and goggling.
1798C. Williamson Descr. Genesee Country iii. 19 The number of *sail-boats have greatly increased on the Lake. 1831M. Holley Texas (1833) 47 From Brazoria to Bolivar, I came in a sail-boat. a1835Mrs. Hemans in H. F. Chorley Mem. (1837) II. 17 Neither steam-packet nor sail⁓boat was attainable. 1888F. M. Crawford With Immortals II. 129 The happiest moments of my life? I think they were spent in a sail-boat. 1911J. C. Lincoln Cap'n Warren's Wards xxi. 333 He had gone to see the sail-boat man. 1956M. Duggan Immanuel's Land 64 A flatbottomed sailboat on the slope shifted almost afloat, and settled again into the mud. 1977E. Leonard Unknown Man No. 89 xxi. 211 A painting..of..a sailboat with the mast broken off.
c1475Pict. Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 805/8 Hec supera, -eris, a *seyllebonde.
1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., *Sail burton, a purchase extending from topmast-head to deck, for sending sails aloft ready for bending.
1941J. Masefield Gautama 52 The red *sail-curtain droops.
1776T. Pennant Tour in Scotl. & Voy. Hebrides 1772 II. 143 At present the manufactures have risen to a great pitch: for example, that sail-cloth, or *sail-duck, as it is here called, is very considerable.
1795Scots Mag. LVII. 610/1 Sail-duck manufacturer. 1812J. Smyth Pract. of Customs (1812) 145 Sail Duck.
1707Mortimer Husb. 112 Four Men with either the Wicker or *Sail-fan.
1882J. E. Tenison-Woods Fish & Fisheries N.S. Wales 190 *Sail-fluke. 1886R. C. Leslie Sea-painter's Log x. 194 It is said..the sail-fluke gets its name from a habit of..lifting its tail out of water like a sail, running before the wind into shallow water.
1931A. Gymnich in V. W. Pagé Henley's ABC of Gliding 148 By *sailflying we understand a flight without any kind of motor or other driving power in which the energy required for the flight without loss in altitude, is taken solely from the air currents. 1944T. Horsley Soaring Flight 71 The chapter on soaring sites will have given an indication of the winds used in the simplest sail-flying.
1794Rigging & Seamanship I. 88 *Sail-hook. 1886Encycl. Brit. XXI. 155/1 The tools..of a sailmaker are..fids,..sail-hook, bobbin for twine, and sundry small articles.
1884St. James's Gaz. 22 Feb. 7/1 It is apparently the inside of a *sail-house at a fishing-port.
1885Standard Nat. Hist. (1888) III. 413 The *sail-lizard, Histiurus amboinensis, so called from the enormous perpendicular development surmounting its tail.
1769Falconer Dict. Marine ii. (1780), Voilerie, a *sail-loft, or place where sails are constructed. 1891Leeds Mercury 9 Oct. 4/4 Dr. Hurst..traced the history of Methodism in America from the first meeting held in a sail-loft in New York in 1776 to the present day.
1596Shakes. Tam. Shr. v. i. 80 He is a *saile-maker in Bergano. 1773Cook's 1st Voy. iii. xii. in Hawkesworth's Voy. III. 722 Every individual had been sick except the sail maker. 1916H. Barber Aeroplane Speaks 103 All is now ready for the sail-maker to cover the surface with fabric.
1497Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 297 *Sayle Nedylles price the c xijd. 1769Falconer Dict. Marine Uu ij b, Sail-needles, or bolt-rope needles. 1851H. Melville Whale xxii, The sail-needles are in the green locker.
1953J. Masefield Conway 298 As it happens, we have the *sail-plan of her sister-ship. 1961F. H. Burgess Dict. Sailing 178 Sail plan, a diagram to show a boat's rig and measurements.
1805Shipwright's Vade-M. 126 *Sail-Rooms are built between decks upon the orlop or lower deck to contain the spare sails. 1905A. R. Wallace My Life I. 310 The captain then had the sail-room amid-ships cleared out for men to sleep in.
c1711Petiver Gazophyl. x. Tab. 99 Common Indian Nautilus or *Sail-shell.
a1850Marg. Fuller At Home & Abr. (1860) 438 It went into the mail⁓bag of some *sail-ship, instead of steamer.
1600Tourneur Transf. Metam. lii, As *sail-swel'd barks are droue by wind.
1513Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. IV. 471 Item, for xliiij li *saill threid..xlviij s.
1486Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 13, vj skaynes of *Saile Twyne. 1497Ibid. 185, c weyght seyle twyne—xxxiijs iiijd. c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 52 Sails are sewn with sail twine.
1342–3Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees) 543 In *Saylwandis emp. et aliis reparac. factis in molend. de Hesilden—xxiiij s.
1962C. H. Gibbs-Smith Sir George Cayley's Aeronautics 1796–1855 xlii. 129 It is interesting to find at the present time (1962) a powered aeroplane using flexible *sail-wings: this is the American Ryan ‘Flex Wing’ which has plastic-coated nylon wings supported in a delta plan by only three rigid spars, which meet at the front; one is central and the other two spread out to form the sides of the triangle. 1972Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 13 Oct. 9 A sail wing is a device shaped rather like an extremely ambitious paper dart and is made from dural aluminium and nylon. From a point at its centre hangs an ‘A’ frame... The pilot hangs in space upon an arrangement structurally similar to a child's swing, complete with a narrow wooden seat. 1974Sci. Amer. Dec. 141/1 The sail wing consists of a tubular spar that supports the leading edge of a fabric envelope and a set of short, rigid booms at the tip and foot of the spar between which a slender cable is stretched to form the trailing edge of the wing. 1978P. O'Donnell Dragon's Claw xiv. 293 The sail-wing rested on the grass... They stood surveying the wing.
c1586C'tess Pembroke Ps. civ. xi, There the *saile-winged shipps on waves doe glide. 1641Milton Ch. Govt. ii. Wks. 1851 III. 180 They should make it their Knightly adventure to..vanquish this mighty sailewing'd monster. 1855Singleton Virgil I. 236 Gazing down Upon the sail-winged ocean.
▪ II. sail, n.2|seɪl|
[f. sail v.1]
1. An act of sailing; a voyage or excursion in a sailing vessel.
1604Shakes. Oth. v. ii. 268 Heere is my butt And verie Sea⁓marke of my vtmost Saile. a1619M. Fotherby Atheom. i. ii. §2 (1622) 12 Where in the Lawes broad Sea, with wind and tyde, Ther's happier saile, then any where beside. 1663Gerbier Counsel 109 Six weeks sail from England. 1748Anson's Voy. ii. vi. 195 We made an easy sail for the bay. 1807–8Syd. Smith Plymley's Lett. Wks. 1859 II. 163/2 The nearest of these harbours is not two days' sail from the southern coast of Ireland. 1853W. Irving in Life & Lett. (1864) IV. 157 We went by way of the lakes, and had a magnificent sail (if I may use the word) down Lake Champlain in a steamer to Plattsburg. 1859Jephson Brittany xii. 212 We had a delightful sail among the numerous islets. 1868G. Duff Pol. Surv. 99 Hiogo and Kobé..are situated upon two bays of the inland sea, about 365 miles' sail from Yokohama. 1884Times (weekly ed.) 29 Aug. 14/1 The day was beautiful and the sail was delightful.
b. transf. (Sc. and Irish). A ride in a vehicle of any kind.
1830Galt Lawrie T. vi. viii, I thought it my duty to take a sail in our wagon with Mr. Herbert. 1902Ballymena Observer (E.D.D.), Wull ye gie me a sail in the kert?
c. to take sail: to embark.
1904Westm. Gaz. 10 May 8/1 He took sail in the capacity of a cabin-boy in a vessel bound for New Orleans.
2. ? nonce-uses. A number sailing:
a. of ships;
b. of water-birds.
1608Shakes. Per. i. iv. 61 Wee haue descryed vpon our neighbouring shore, a portlie saile of ships make hitherward. 1727Swift Country Post Wks. 1755 III. i. 175 Yesterday a large sail of ducks passed by here.
3. Sailing qualities; speed in sailing.
In many contexts hardly to be distinguished from sail n.1
1602Mansel True Rep. Service 9 The Gallies being..quicker of saile then they. 1615G. Sandys Trav. 87 A ship of better defence then saile. 1622R. Hawkins Voy. S. Sea li. 122 Being of better saile then we, and the night comming on, we lost sight of her. a1642Sir W. Monson Naval Tracts i. (1704) 179/2 Finding his Ship but ill of Sail. 1643Declar. Commons, Reb. Irel. 51 [He] could not take her [the ship], because she fled away, and was more swift in sayle then he. 1667Milton P.L. vi. 534 Back with speediest Sail Zophiel, of Cherubim the swiftest wing, Came flying.
4. Comb. † sail-star = lodestar; † sail-stone [= Du. zeilsteen] = loadstone.
c15111st Eng. Bk. Amer. (Arb.) Introd. 28/1 That men the northe sayle sterre or pollumarticum, or the waghen called, no more may be seen. 1595Duncan App. Etym. (E.D.S.), Magnes, the adamant, the saile-stone. 1683Pettus Fleta Min. i. (1686) 320 The Magnet is also called the Sail stone, for the Sailors look upon it as their Chief Instructor.
▪ III. sail, n.3
[app. f. sail v.3 (sense 3). Cf. the synonymous F. saillie, f. saillir to project.]
Amount of projection from a surface. Also Comb. sail-over = oversail n.
1611Cotgrave, s.v. Couronne, The Corona, crowne, or member of greatest sayle, in a Cornish. 1660H. Bloome Archit. A, Projectura, the sayle of every moulding. 1812P. Nicholson Mech. Exerc. 267 Sail over, is the overhanging of one or more courses [of bricks] beyond the naked of the wall. 1924H. J. Butler Motor Bodywork xviii. 276 Some of the lighter types of delivery van are made with a recessed rocker side... The body is then built up to the seat line by means of, say, an 11/4{pp} hardwood rocker side lapped on vertically, or with a slight sail, into the bottom side.
▪ IV. sail, n.4 dial.|seɪl|
[? repr. OE. *sǽᵹel var. of sáᵹol staff: see sowel.]
(See quot.)
1813Davis Agric. Wilts in Archæol. Rev. (1888) Mar., Sails,..upright rods of hurdles used for sheep folding. 1893N. H. Kennard Diog. Sandals vi. 90 There are ten ‘sails’ to each ‘wattle hurdle’.
▪ V. sail, v.1|seɪl|
Forms: 1 siᵹlan, seᵹl(i)an, 3 sæilien, seili(en, sayli, 3–4 seily, seile, 4 seylle, seille, 4–6 sale, (5 ceylyn, seylyn), 5 sayll(e, 6 saill, 4–7 sayl(e, 3–7 saile, 6–7 sail.
[OE. siᵹlan, seᵹl(i)an corresponds to MDu. zeghelen, zeilen (mod.Du. zeilen), MHG. sigelen, segelen (mod.G. segeln), ON. sigla (Sw. segla, Da. seile):—OTeut. type *segljan, f. *seglom sail n.1
The Teut. vb. was adopted in OF. as sigler to sail (whence sigle a sail); an altered form of the same word is believed to exist in later OF. singler, mod.F. cingler to sail (in a specified direction), whence Sp. singlar, Pg. singlar.]
I. Intransitive uses.
1. a. Of persons: To travel on water in a vessel propelled by the action of the wind upon sails; now often in extended sense, to travel on water in a vessel propelled by any means other than oars; to navigate a vessel in a specified direction.
c893K. ælfred Oros. i. i. §14 He..siᵹlde ða east be lande. Ibid. iv. x. §10 Þa he hamweard seᵹlde. c1205Lay. 20889 And swa heo scullen wræcchen..sæilien [c 1275 sayli] ouer sæ. Ibid. 28797 Þeo comen Sexisce men seilen to londe. c1320Sir Tristr. 1013 Þai seylden in to þe wide Wiþ her schippes tvo. 1338R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 236 Now þei saile and rowe to Wales to Leulyns. 13..Cursor M. 24833 (Gött.) Forth þai sailed [MS. Cott. floted] on þat flode, for all to will þe wind þaim stode. c1350Will. Palerne 2673 Þat he may nouȝt saile swiftli as he wold. 1375Barbour Bruce xx. 322 A lang way furthwarde salyt he. c1386Chaucer Prioress' Prol. 2 Now longe moote thou saille by the cost, Sire gentil maister gentil Maryneer! 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VI. 163 Egbertus þe monk..hadde i-seilled about Bretayne. 1390Gower Conf. II. 26 King Demephon, whan he be Schipe To Troieward with felaschipe Sailende goth. c1440Promp. Parv. 65/1 Ceylyn vpon watyr, velifico. c1470Henry Wallace x. 797 Thai saylyt furth by part of Ingland schor. 1470–85Malory Arthur x. lxi. 517 Thenne sir palomydes sailed euen longes humber to the costes of the see. 1471Caxton Recuyell (Sommer) I. 139 He sayled and rowed vnto the cyte. 1530Palsgr. 696/2, I loue nat to sayle by see, but when I can nat chose. 1565Reg. Privy Council Scot. I. 333 That nane saill in marchandice without he be honestlie abelyeit lyk ane marchand. 1585T. Washington tr. Nicholay's Voy. i. ii. 2 b, We sayled along..towardes the..cape De creo. 1590Shakes. Com. Err. i. i. 63 A league from Epidamium had we saild. a1691Boyle Hist. Air (1692) 201 An observing man, that had sailed to and fro between Europe and the East Indies. 1712Addison Spect. No. 489 ⁋1 A troubled Ocean, to a Man who sails upon it, is, I think, the biggest Object that he can see in Motion. 1798Coleridge Anc. Mar. v. xix, Till noon we quietly sailed on, Yet never a breeze did breathe. 1830Tennyson Sea-Fairies 1 Slow sail'd the weary mariners. 1836W. Irving Astoria I. 41 [They] sail down that river to its supposed exit near the straits of Annian. 1860G. Bennett Gatherings Naturalist Austral. 425 We sailed..one day 191 miles, another 225 miles.
fig.c1374Chaucer Troylus i. 606 Loue..Wiþ dessespeir so sorwfully me offendeth Þat streght vn-to þe deth myn herte saileth. 1551Haddon Exhort. Repent. in Furniv. Ballads fr. MSS. I. 324 But .lv. yere after, it [the plague] sayled into Flaunders. 1623A. Taylor in Farr S.P. Jas. I (1847) 203, I spent my dayes in sorrow for thy good, I sayl'd to th' cradle in teares, to the graue in blood.
b. spec. To make excursions in, or to manage, a sailing-boat: to practise the sport of yachting.
1898Daily News 30 Aug. 4/5 She is devoted to sports and outdoor exercises... She boats and sails.
c. In figurative context. Chiefly in proverbial phrases: † to sail all in one ship, to ‘row in the same boat’, to belong to one party or class; † to sail on another board (see board n. 15); to sail near (or close to) the wind, to come very near to transgression of a law or a received moral principle.
1589R. Harvey Pl. Perc. (1590) 7 You be all of one Church, saile all in one ship. 1608D. T[uvil] Ess. Pol. & Mor. 123 They will alwaies saile by the Carde and Compasse of their own mind. 1823Byron Juan ix. xxvi, My words, at least, are more sincere and hearty Than if I sought to sail before the wind. 1865H. Kingsley Hillyars & B. iv, A certain kind of young English gentleman, who has sailed too close to the wind at home, and who comes to the colony to be whitewashed. 1883W. E. Norris Thirlby Hall viii, With regard to Turf transactions again, he may sail very near the wind indeed, and be pardoned.
†d. quasi-refl. Obs.
1640tr. Verdere's Rom. of Rom. iii. xxviii. 116 Away they sayled them, as they hoped with a prosperous wind.
2. Of a ship or other vessel: To move or travel on water by means of sails, or (in modern use) by means of steam or any other mechanical agency.
c1205Lay. 25525 Þer comen seilien sone ȝeond þa sæ wide scipes uniuoȝe. c1350Will. Palerne 567, I sayle now in þe see as schip boute mast, boute anker or ore. 1375Barbour Bruce xix. 193 Marchand-schippis that saland war Fra Scotland to Flandriss with war. c1384Chaucer H. Fame ii. 395 And behelde..shippis seyllynge in the see. c1400Mandeville (1839) xxx. 305 It rennethe in so grete Wawes, that no Schipp may not rowe ne seyle azenes it. 1500–20Dunbar Poems lxxxviii. 29 Where many a barge doth saile, and row with are. 1530Palsgr. 696/2, I sayle, as a shyppe doth in the see whan she is under sayle, je single... Some shyppe wyll sayle as faste with a syde wynde as some wyll with a full wynde. 1535Coverdale Isa. xxxiii. 21 In that place..shal nether Gallye rowe, ner greate shippe sale. 1606Shakes. Tr. & Cr. ii. iii. 277 (Qo.) Light boates saile swift, though greater hulkes draw deepe. 1687A. Lovell tr. Thevenot's Trav. i. 110 These Saiques..carry great Cargoes of Goods, but they sail not fast, unless they be before the Wind, or rather they sail no otherwise, for they cannot go upon a Wind. 1734Pope Ess. Man iv. 385 Say, shall my little bark attendant sail, Pursue the triumph, and partake the gale? 1785J. Phillips Treat. Inland Navig. 34 The vessels..are built so as to sail either end foremost, by removing the rudder. 1797Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVII. 376/2 It would be an easy matter to determine the form of a ship intended to sail by means of oars. 1828J. H. Moore Pract. Navig. (ed. 20) 60 A ship from the Lizard, in lat. 49° 59′ N. sails S.W. by W. 488 miles. Required the latitude she is in. 1886Gladden Applied Chr. i. 3 Steamships sail from every shore with the contributions of all the continents to the world's trade.
3. a. To begin a journey by water; to set sail, start on a voyage; to leave the port or the place of anchorage. Said both of a vessel and of the persons on board.
c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xxvi. (Nycholas) 235 Þis done, þai sailyt but bad quhare-to þare tryst wes mad. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VIII. 105 Þe queen Alianore..and meny oþer compelled hym for to seille aȝen. 1493Ledger-bk. A. Halyburton 2 His costis in Medilburgh bydand quhill the schip sallit. 1611Bible Acts xxi. 2 And finding a ship sailing ouer vnto Phenicea, wee went abroad, and set foorth. 1777Cook's 2nd Voy. i. i. I. 5 On the 13th, at six o'clock in the morning, I sailed from Plymouth Sound. 1802in W. Selwyn Law Nisi Prius (1817) II. 932, I think the captain will sail to-morrow. 1847C. Brontë J. Eyre xxxiv, I have taken my berth in an East Indiaman which sails on the twentieth of June. 1874G. J. Whyte-Melville Uncle John xiii, A friend of mine..met with an accident the very night before the steamer sailed. 1891Law Times XCI. 2/2 The deceased..wrote a letter..in which he stated that he ought to have made his will before sailing.
†b. Conjugated with to be. Obs.
1633Fife Witch Trial in Statist. Acc. Scotl. (1796) XVIII. App. 656 Her husband being newly sailed, she craved some money of her. 1764Goldsm. Hist. Eng. in Lett. (1772) II. 84 The fleet of the prince was already sailed. 1776T. Hutchinson Diary 20 Jan. II. 8 He says six of the seven Regiments at Corke were embarked, and he concludes the whole have been sailed some days. 1786A. M. Bennett Juvenile Indiscretions V. 111 Sir James..was sailed for India on an appointment from government. 1787Jefferson Writ. (1859) II. 281 Should the packet be sailed, I will pray you to send my letter by the first of the vessels which you mention.
4. transf.
a. To glide on the surface of water or through the air, either by the impulsion of wind or without any visible effort.
1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 304 And now I se where a soule cometh hiderward seyllynge With glorie & with grete liȝte. 1592Shakes. Rom. & Jul. ii. ii. 32 A winged messenger of heauen..When he bestrides the lazie puffing Cloudes, And sailes vpon the bosome of the ayre. 1667Milton P.L. v. 268 Down thither prone in flight He speeds, and..Sailes between worlds and worlds, with steddie wing. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 529 Swans that sail along the Silver Flood. 1754Gray Poesy 116 Sailing with supreme dominion Thro' the azure deep of air. 1804Scott Bard's Incant. 34 Mute are ye all? No murmurs strange Upon the midnight breeze sail by. 1820Byron Mar. Fal. iv. i. 74 The high moon sails upon her beauteous way. 1849M. Arnold Forsaken Merman 43 Where great whales come sailing by, Sail and sail, with unshut eye, Round the world for ever and aye? 1849Thackeray Pendennis lxiii, When a man, under pecuniary difficulties,..dives out of sight, as it were, from the flock of birds in which he is accustomed to sail. 1865Mathias Sport in Himalayas 16, I shot an immense eagle..as he was sailing in fancied security over my head. 1884Manch. Exam. 19 Feb. 5/4 The flowing clouds..sail over the scene of the hay harvest in the Welsh meadow. 1884Pall Mall G. 12 Aug. 4/1 As for blackcock..the wary old birds..sail in the open over the moor a hundred yards out of shot. 1897[see glider 2 a]. 1910Daily Mail Year Bk. 149/2 The Gross was compelled to descend, after sailing above the enemy's line.
b. Of a vehicle: To move smoothly and without apparent propelling force.
1866‘Mark Twain’ Speeches (1923) 13 The Kanaka, without spur or whip,..sailed by us on the old plug. 1902C. N. & A. M. Williamson Lightning Conductor 26 The car..looked so handsome as it sailed up to the hotel door that my pride in it came back.
5. Of persons, in various transferred senses.
†a. slang. To saunter, go casually. Obs.
a1700B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew s.v., How you Sail about? How you Santer about? 1700T. Brown Amusem. Ser. & Com. viii. 121 From thence I sailed into a Presbyterian Meeting near Covent-Garden.
b. To move or go in a stately or dignified manner, suggestive of the movement of a ship under sail. (Chiefly of women; also occas. of an animal.) Also in weakened sense, to glide over a surface; to pass rapidly or smoothly.
1819M. R. Mitford Let. 18 Mar. (1925) 161 Just as we were at our merriest, in sailed Madam J―, like a tragedy queen. 1836W. Dunlap Thirty Years Ago I. ii. 22 Mrs. Epsom sailed majestically about the house. 1841Motley Corr. (1889) I. iv. 84 Stately dames de la cour would sail into the room and sail out again with their long trains sweeping after them. 1847C. Brontë J. Eyre vii, Then all the great people sailed in state from the room. 1859G. Meredith R. Feverel xxxviii, A rumour spread that reached Mrs. Doria's ears. She rushed to Adrian first... She sailed down upon Richard. 1860–1Thackeray Lovel iii. 110 Lady B. sailed in.., arrayed in ribbons of scarlet. 1876‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer v. 58 Then there was a wild yelp of agony and the poodle went sailing up the aisle. 1885Rider Haggard K. Solomon's Mines iv, A troop of tall giraffes, who galloped, or rather sailed off, with their strange gait. 1909R. A. Wason Happy Hawkins 10, I flopped onto a pony an' sailed out to a little glen. 1949W. Awdry Tank Engine Thomas Again 50 He remembered the Level Crossing. There was Bertie fuming at the gates while they sailed gaily through. 1979C. Egleton Backfire xii. 135 He sailed through Immigration and collected his suitcase.
c. to sail in (slang): to proceed boldly to action. Also, to launch into or attack; also fig.
1856‘Q. K. P. Doesticks’ Plu-ri-bus-tah iv. 69 ‘Sailing in’, without regard to Any of the laws of ‘Fancy’. 1883‘Mark Twain’ Life on Mississippi xxvi. 246 Old General Pillow..sailed in, too, leading his troops as lively as a boy. 1889Harper's Mag. Mar. 561/1 A man must dismiss all thoughts of..common-sense when it comes to masquerade dresses, and just sail in and make an unmitigated fool of himself. 1891Morn. Advertiser 30 Mar. (Farmer), John Harvey called William Tillman a liar 150 times,..and offered to lick him 104 times. At the 104th William..thrashed John. The verdict of the jury was that William ought to have sailed in an hour and a half earlier. 1894Fiske Holiday Stories (1900) 164 ‘I'll tell you the whole affair, if you care to listen to it.’ ‘Sail right in, Colonel,’ cried the company. 1903A. H. Lewis Boss iv. 52 Half an hour before six, blow your whistle an' sail in. 1934R. Campbell Broken Record ii. 33, I sailed into him with a beauty on the ear. 1936F. Clune Roaming round Darling xvii. 173, I sailed into Mrs. O'Malley's cooked meat and damper.
II. Transitive senses.
6. a. Of persons, also of a vessel: To sail over or upon, to navigate (the sea, a river, etc.). Now somewhat arch.
1382Wyclif Ecclus. xliii. 26 Who seilen the see [Vulg. qui navigant mare; 1388 The that seilen in the see]. c1500Priests of Peebles 204 Then brocht he wol, and wyselie couth it wey; And efter that sone saylit he the sey. c1555Lyndesay Tragedy 104 Quhowbeit his grace Had salit the sey. 1560Rolland Crt. Venus Prol. 146 [To sum] Ingyne hes geuin to saill the see. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies ii. vi. 92 The river of Amazons..which our Spaniards sailed in their discoveries. 1608Shakes. Per. iv. iv. 2 Thus time we waste, & long leagues make short, Saile seas in Cockles, haue and wish but fort. a1700Dryden Ovid's Met. xii. 9 A thousand Ships were man'd to sail the Sea. 1708J. Philips Cyder i. 459 Now turn thine Eye to view Alcinous' Groves,..from whence, Sailing the Spaces of the boundless Deep, To Ariconium pretious Fruits arriv'd. 1725Pope Odyss. v. 354 Far on the left those radiant fires to keep The Nymph directed, as he sail'd the deep. 1840Longfellow Wreck of Hesperus 2 It was the schooner Hesperus That sailed the wintry sea.
†b. To visit (a region) by sailing; to sail along (a coast). Obs.
a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI (1550) 88 This lusty Capitain saylyng al the cost of Susseix and Kent, durst not once take lande, til he arriued in the dounes. 1594R. Ashley tr. Loys le Roy 123 b, In ancient times the North was sailed by the commandement of Avgvstvs.
7. a. With cognate object: † To perform (a voyage, etc.) by sailing (obs.). Also to sail through, sail out: to continue (a sailing-match, race), to the end.
c1386Chaucer Frankl. T. 123 Where as she many a shipe and barge seigh Seillynge his cours. 1726G. Shelvocke Voy. round World Pref. 5 Such as may never have an occasion or inclination to sail such long Voyages. 1886Field 4 Sept. 364/2 The match [for yachts] could not be sailed through before the close time, 6.30. 1899Daily News 29 Sept. 3/2 The uninjured vessel shall sail out the race.
b. To ‘sail’ or glide through (the air).
1725Pope Odyss. i. 126 Sublime she sails Th' aerial space, and mounts the winged gales. 1765Beattie To Churchill 34 He soars Pindaric heights, and sails the waste of Heaven. 1899Daily News 26 June 8/3 The buzzard..is a fine-looking figure, as on broad wings he slowly sails the sky.
8. a. To navigate (a ship or other vessel).
1566Act 8 Eliz. in Hakluyt's Voy. (1599) I. 371 But onely in English ships and sailed for the most part with English Mariners. 1675Lond. Gaz. No. 1024/1 She had on board about 80 or 90 Negroes, and was sailed by Greeks. 1848J. F. Cooper Capt. Spike III. 207 The Poughkeepsie was admirably sailed and handled. 1888Lowell Heartsease & Rue 177 He's a Rip van Winkle skipper,..who sails his bedevilled old clipper In the wind's eye, straight as a bee. a1890R. W. Church Oxford Movement iii. (1891) 35 He [R. H. Froude] loved the sea; he liked to sail his own boat. 1908Westm. Gaz. 28 Mar. 3/1 We were rowed and sailed by an amusing..ex-sailor.
b. To put (a toy boat) on the water and direct its course.
1863Hawthorne Our Old Home I. 270 Schoolboys sail little boats on the river or play at marbles.
†9. To cause to sail, carry away sailing. Obs.
16..Balow in Laneham's Let. (1871) p. clxxi, Till from myne eyes a sea sall flow, To saile my soule from mortall woe To that immortall mirtall shore.
†10. With adv. to sail down: to bring (an object) below the horizon by sailing away from it.
1847A. M. Gilliam Trav. Mexico 276 We at once determined to sit up all night, to watch that the steersman would not sail the light down. We were induced to do so for..the night previous..he saw a light-house,..and steered from the object.
†11. To provide with sails. Obs.
1600Hakluyt Voy. III. 862 It is ordeined that the shippes haue double sailes, that is, that they bee thorowly sayled, and all newe sayles [etc.].
Add:[II.] 12. Causatively: to send (an object) ‘sailing’ through the air; to throw or project.
1934in Webster. 1936J. G. Cozzens Men & Brethren i. 12 Ernest thumbed loose his clerical collar and detached the black linen stock, sailing them onto the top of the bureau. 1961Washington Post 25 Jan. a23/4 He sailed his racquet into the stands, with no serious casualties resulting. 1986T. McGuane To skin Cat (1989) 49, I pitched the paper, sailing it past their expressionless faces.
▪ VI. † sail, v.2 Obs.
Forms: 4 sail, sayly, 4–5 saile, sayle, 4–6 saill(e, sale, saylle. See also sailyie v. (Sc.)
[Aphetic form of assail v.]
1. trans. = assail v. in various senses.
a1300Cursor M. 9654 Ne he mai scap, ga quar he ga, Þat him ne sailles ai his fa. Ibid. 24846 Þe see þam sailed on ilk side. 13..Guy Warw. (A.) 4134 When þe dragon seye com Gij Þe lyoun he forlett, & gan him sayly. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xxxii. (Iustin) 395 Þane, tholand god, hyre he can saile with felone feuere & gret trawale. a1400–50Alexander 5559 Þai sett in a sadd sowme & salid his kniȝtes. c1460Towneley Myst. xx. 506 The feynd ful fast salys you, In wan-hope to gar you fall. 1535Stewart Cron. Scot. (Rolls) I. 342 That cruell cald hes saillit him so soir.
2. absol. quasi-intr. To make an assault.
c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 4364 When alle were set in ylka bataille, & schept..whilk of þam suld formast saile. c1400Rom. Rose 7338 Than was ther nought, but ‘Every man Now to assaut, that sailen can’. c1470Henry Wallace xi. 414 ‘Falowis’, he said, ‘agayn all at this place Thai will nocht saill’.
Hence † ˈsailing vbl. n.2
13..K. Alis. 7392 Aither gan so areche, With 'saylyng, and with smytyng. c1330Arth. & Merl. 8257 In þe first of þat seylinge Þai slowen michel heþen genge. 1426Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 24206, I [Sekenesse] overthrowe hir [sc. Helthe] ageyn,..And, ne were that medicyne Ys cause that she doth releve, My sayllyng shold hir often greve.
▪ VII. † sail, v.3 Obs.
Forms: 3–4 sayle, 4 saile, saille, sailly; also (sense 3) 7 sailie.
[a. OF. saillir to dance, also as in mod.Fr. to issue forth, sally, to project = Pr. salir, salhir to dance, issue forth, Sp. salir, Pg. sahir to go out, It. salire to ascend:—L. salīre (pres. ind. salio) to leap. Cf. sally v.2]
1. intr. To dance.
1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 5633 Vor þe deuel com biuore him & hoppede & lou & saylede & pleyde & made ioye ynou. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xiii. 233, I can..noyther sailly ne saute, ne synge with þe gyterne.
2. To issue forth, sally.
1583T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iii. 93 The Souldiers of the Towne, sayling out, chased the Enemy.
3. Arch. To project from a surface. to sail over = oversail v.
1563Shute Archit. C iv b, The Proiectures be like vnto their heightes but that Corona, doth sayle ouer twise his height. 1664Evelyn tr. Freart's Archit. 138 That part of Corona which sailies over.
▪ VIII. sail
variant of seal; obs. form of sale. |